Study Aids
Case Briefs Overview
Casebooks
Case Briefs
L

Lynumn v. Illinois

372 U.S. 528 (1963)

From our private database of 46,500+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

Lynumn v. Illinois

United States Supreme Court
372 U.S. 528 (1963)

Play video

Facts

Three police officers arrested James Zeno, a convicted felon, for possession of narcotics. They then offered Zeno leniency if he would arrange a setup so that they could make an additional drug arrest. Zeno orchestrated a setup under which it appeared that Lynumn (defendant) sold marijuana to Zeno. The three police officers interrogated Lynumn in her apartment. Lynumn initially denied selling marijuana to Zeno, but the officers threatened to send her to jail for 10 years, have her children taken away, and have her children’s welfare benefits terminated if she did not confess. They also promised her leniency in exchange for a confession. Lynumn eventually confessed and was tried for unlawful possession and sale of marijuana. At her trial, Lynumn recanted her confession and testified that she had confessed only because she had no previous experience with the criminal-justice system and had therefore believed the officers had the power to follow through on their threats. The trial court found that her confession had been voluntary, and she was convicted. The judgment was affirmed by the Illinois Supreme Court, and the United States Supreme Court granted certiorati.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Stewart, J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 832,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

    Unlock this case briefRead our student testimonials

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

    Learn about our approachRead more about Quimbee

Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,500 briefs, keyed to 994 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,500 briefs - keyed to 994 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership

Casebooks

Criminal Procedure

Key Terms